Battery
by kidstandout
Summary: the black swordsman and the little rookie... the berserk healer and the sword princess... the virgin goddess and the pixy. their two worlds were separate... until today! Current chapter progress: all chapters have been beta edited. chapter 5: 500/3k words
1. Black & White

**Part 1: Black & White**

 _The Dungeon city of Orario, The Hostess of fertility Pub…_

It was business as usual at the pub today; adventurers were drinking and laughing as they recalled tales of their journeys as the maids served them their meals. Some performers played a musical assortment of violins and drums which only complimented the chaotic harmony of ale glasses colliding in cheers and celebratory shouts.

Caught in the middle of this phenomenal scene was a teenager with white hair, fair skin and red eyes. This boy with a black long sleeve V-neck and pants that were lightly covered in armor plates was none other than the "Little Rookie", Bell Cranel. One could easily see that he stood out in the sea of merry men and woman surrounding him. As Bell quietly ate a plate filled with fish and pasta, an angelic sense of calm surrounded him and could be spotted from afar. However, it was no longer case, as one of his companions interrupted him.

"Bell-sama, we should get going now, we're losing plenty of valuable grinding time."

You would think this demand would be coming from a scolding older sibling, but its source was actually a brown haired girl half his height. One who's small stature was made all the more obvious by the giant bag she somehow carried on her back as if she was Atlas' descendant.

"Relax Shorty, we adventurers need to make sure our stomachs are full, am I right Bell?"

The boy's other companion made it abundantly clear that he wasn't finished downing his ale, as it made its way from his grinning mouth resting under a bush of red hair to the black war robe covering his abdomen. Fortunately for him, the blue scarf around his neck occasional doubled as a handkerchief.

"We won't take much longer to finish eating Lili, I promise."

"Need I remind you two that we still have to go back to the furnace mansion to get the others before we enter the dungeon."

"We'll be fine Shor…."

"One more time… call me Shorty one more time Crozzo-san!"

"Uh Syyyr, we'll pay our bill now!"

De-escalating the situation like he always does, Bell decided it was time to get going. He knew how his two partners got when things get too stagnant. Bell wanted to enjoy the peace for a little bit more, but Lili and Welf had other plans.

"Thank you for stopping by Bell-San, have a great day!"

"You too Syr, say bye to Mamma Mia and Ryu for me!"

After tipping his regular maid, Syr, for serving them, the three of them made their way to the exit. Bell didn't know why but, he felt like something big was in store for him that day.

Upon reaching the abandoned church they call home (Lili forced them to jog to make up time), the three adventurers burst through the doors.

"I'm back Kami-sama…."

Waiting there, drinking some tea at a table next to the doors was what looked like a twelve year old girl in a skimpy white dress, fair skinned, with long black pony tails and pearl blue eyes. But what gave away the other-worldly nature of this person was the fact that her bosom was way too developed for her supposed age, which was made all the more apparent as they were now pressed in his face.

"Bell-kun, you're back!"

"Hestia*cough*...can't…breathe*cough*..."

After she finally let go, allowing Bell to see more than her breasts, he noticed the others standing behind her.

"Bell Cranel-san…It's good to see you."

Bell could recognize that voice anywhere; it belonged to one of the most contradicting, yet captivating people he had ever met. The teenage girl before him had blonde hair, yellow eyes and fair skin looked like a beautiful princess, yet the light silver chest plate over her white and blue one piece dress along with the long sword she carried gave the impression of a battle tested warrior. Standing before him was none other than the "Sword Princess", Aiz Wallenstein.

Behind Aiz was her fellow members of the Loki familia; A blonde hobbit named Finn, who looked deceptively young for his age, the dark skinned, skimpy dressed amazon twins Tiona & Tione, an elf clad in pink named Lefiya and the red headed (and flat chested) goddess who led this group and the entire familia they belonged to, Loki.

"EEEEEEHHHHHH! Kami-sama, why are they here?" said Bell, looking at Hestia. He then turned his head to address yet another question, this time to the group behind the goddess.

"Wait...shouldn't you guys be deep inside the dungeon on the frontlines?"

Hestia, seeing Bell's curiosity becoming more and more obvious with each word coming out of his mouth, she decided to explain.

"Take a seat; we have a lot to talk about."

As they all sat in the main chamber, Bell gave a small nod to Aiz, who responded with a smile. Lately, he felt things were going smoothly with her, even if he felt like outside forces (Hestia and Loki) seemed like they were adamant on keeping them apart.

"What I'm about to tell you is top secret information, so listen up! The gods have requested your services for a highly confidential, off the books mission. There have been reports of a strange portal showing up somewhere within the first 20 levels of the dungeon. With the ever changing nature of the monsters being created by the dungeon, the pantheon of the gods is concerned with the possibility sentient beasts capable of mimic the heritance of a blessing."

"Loki, are you telling us that the dungeon could possess the ability to create evil adventurers?"

"No Aiz; that we will handle, if push comes to shove. The reason you have been tasked to enter the Dungeon and find the portal is due to the possibility of it spawning a devil!"

The mere thought of such an endeavour had everyone frozen in shock. The idea of a being as powerful as a god being created by the dungeon sounded like something out of a nightmare. Loki continued.

"The dungeon will be closed off while a joint party between you all investigates the matter…"

"And as a special condition, I will be tagging along with you. If the being truly is on par with a god, I will verify the threat and either capture it or end it. The demon may have familiars that assume the role of adventurers so be prepared."

* * *

 _ALFheim Online, New Aincrad, Floor #22. Forest House K4…_

Snow slowly fell and engulfed a forest filled with redwood trees; the lumps of snow accumulating within the leaves and branches only made the view more hazy as they escaped and slipped off. The wind caused the branches to slowly shift back and forth, giving the trees the appearance of strangers waving at them.

It was this tranquil scene that a family of three saw and made their way to the front doorstep of their cabin, concealed within these trees. As the blue haired Undine Maiden wearing a white battle dress opened the door to the cabin, she was followed inside by her 'husband'; a black haired Spriggan carrying two swords on the back of his all black jacket. Also, on his back was their adorable 'daughter' with black hair and a lavender shirt covering her small frame.

"Ahh… home sweet home!"

As the door to the cabin creaked open, the owners of the wooden home greeted their surroundings with splendor.

"Yes Papa, but home isn't home until we're all here, right Mama?"

"Of course!"

The family now sitting in the main foyer of the cabin was none other than the artificial intelligence named Yui and the players she called her parents, Kirito and Asuna.

Their usual routine upon arriving in the world of ALFheim consisted of meeting at the cabin with the rest of their party before deciding to do some quests. Currently, Liz and Silica were running late because they had to make up exams IRL, which forced them to stay at school until later, Leafa had kendo (and by extension so did Recon, who always waited for her), and both Klein and Agil don't get on until later.

"Kirito, what quest do you think we should do today?"

"I don't know Asuna; I actually have to check my messages because Agil sent me some details regarding a new quest that begins today."

Pulling up his player menu, Kirito scrolled through his inbox and found the aforementioned message soon after.

"Hmm… it's called Familia Myth. The requirements for the quest are unknown and it seems that the quest will only be available until a party accepts it. The only description for the quest is this, 'Born of the obsession with aggression is the family that will triumph.'"

"Where is the quest prompt located, Yui?"

"That's the thing I find troubling, Mama. The coordinates for the prompt aren't on a fixed location value; it just has an indicated range just south of the Town of Beginnings on Floor 1, thus disabling me from setting a waypoint directly to it. And that's not the only issue. According to data I've examined, the quest contains programs that are foreign to those belonging to the World Seed of ALO, which in combination with the lack of transparency of notifications regarding the quest could suggest…"

"That it's a mod!"

Even though Kirito said this with certainty, Asuna was skeptical of his response.

"That would be impossible; wouldn't the seed's cardinal detect the presence of tampering and delete it within seconds? The only way a quest like this could happen is if the system generated it."

"It wouldn't be the first time the system executed new protocols on its own. Don't you remember the Excalibur quest?"

"That was different Kirito; ALO was programmed to come up with new quests using existing assets available by the devs. This basically equates to a game coming up with DLC completely by itself, think the Virgin Mary giving birth to Christ."

"Hmm… whatever the case is, we have to check it out; something about this feels off. We should investigate this before it possibly becomes an issue for the players of ALO. Yui, send an urgent message to our party members, we need to meet up ASAP."

"Yes, Papa!"


	2. Party Up!

**Part 2: Party Up!**

 _ALFheim Online, New Aincrad, Floor #1: Town of Beginnings…_

The afternoon sun gave the small town an orange glow as Kirito and Asuna awaited for their party members to arrive.

"Ugh...where are they? It's already been 30 minutes!" said the boy, annoyed from having to wait so long for no reason in particular. Then, they showed up.

First was the red haired samurai in a red and gold war robe known as Klein and the bald and dark skinned axeman, Agil. These 4 go way back; Klein was the first friend Kirito made way back in SAO's official launch in November 2022.

Agil had been close with Kirito and Asuna ever since the first SAO boss battle. With them was GGO's third Bullet Of Bullets' champion sniper, Sinon. She's been playing ALO a lot ever since she became friends with Kirito, which was after they took down a group of murderers in GGO, called Death Gun.

While her ALO avatar had the same short blue hair as the GGO one, the future snip get up and sniper rifle was replaced with a green/black kimono and a bow & arrow respectively.

"What's the hold up? We told them to meet up at the town square at 1700 hours; they should be here by now!"

"Are you sure you should be talking, Klein? You are late as well! You know how much I hate waiting!"

"Relax Kirito, there's no need to be so agitated about this. After all, we were going to wait for Silica and Liz anyways. You forgot what you yourself said?"

"Oh...you're right. I even told you all they would be late because they had to bring a friend with them, if I recall correctly. Also, Sugu and most likely Recon as well will be coming."

"Speaking of which, there they are!"

As Asuna pointed this out, two green specs were looming in the distance, jogging up to them closer and closer until it was apparent that they were people. The former was Kirito's sister IRL, Leafa. Her avatar sported long blonde hair in a pony tail that cascaded past the back of her shamrock green dress that emphasized her large bosom way too well. However, you would get no complaints about that from her green haired 'companion' named Recon.

"We made it onii-chan!"

"Glad to have you here, Leafa."

"We would have been here sooner but I had to make sure Sakuya-niisama informed the other races about the embargo placed on this quest."

"Translation; you were trying not to screw up the one job your girlfriend gave you, right Recon?"

"Onii-chan!"

As Leafa furiously blushed, clearly not amused by her brother's comment, Klein secretly gave Recon a high-five and Sinon smacked the back of Kirito's head.

"Kirito-kun, I suggest you stop teasing your sister right now." Those last few words had a killing intent behind them, giving Kazuto the shivers.

"I can't help it; she's such an easy target!" Kazuto let out an awkward excuse of a laugh, making Sinon roll her eyes, sighing.

"Reinforcements, 12 o clock!"

As the group responded to Agil's instructions, they noticed a group of girls heading their way. The frontrunner of the pack was a pink haired blacksmith in a red dress sporting a mace, going by the name of Lisbeth, or else Liz. She and Asuna had been friends ever since that fateful day back in old SAO, when the chestnut-haired girl first visited the pink's weapons shop.

The young brunette next to Liz was Silica, holding a dagger in her hand. As always, a sky blue dragon hatchling was sitting on her head. The girl was a beast tamer who Kirito helped save her pet, Pina. Because of this, they have been friends ever since.

The blonde next to them with her hair out in a green dress with the giddy smile was the only one who most of the group did not know of.

"Don't start all the fun without us!" The voice belonged to the blacksmith, who had ran late.

"It's about time you two showed up..." Kirito tried to make it as easy as possible to notice how frustrated he was, but the attempt failed miserably, as Liz ignored it and proceeded to introduce their friend.

"This is our new buddy Lux," she put her hand on Klein's now approaching face, "and before you even try it Klein, no; she not looking for a single 20 something year old to date." Everyone broke down in laughter. Well, except from one guy.

"Spoilsport…"

After a few minutes of intense laughter and pleas coming from Klein to stop, Lux spoke.

"It's nice to meet you all, especially you two!"

As Lux pointed to Kirito and Sinon, they were caught off guard.

"You're the hero of SAO; the black swordsman! I was able to escape that nightmare thanks to you, you're one of my biggest inspirations…"

"Um...thanks?"

"Great, another girl Mama and I have to keep an eye on!"

Kirito's only response to Yui's outburst (accompanied by Asuna's glare that meant 'I'm watching you') was to nervously laugh and shrug.

"And you're Sinon-san, the one champion of GGO alongside Kirito-san who helped him take down Death Gun! Liz told me all about what you've been through and I must say you are a hero to all of us who share that struggle…"

"…Oh…thanks…"

"Well since we're here, let's hear the plan. Asuna?"

"Right. We have a general idea of where to look, so the first part of the plan is simple; we split up to cover more ground. Once one of us finds the quest prompt, they'll send a mass message to the party with the location. Once we're all at the prompt is when things become tricky. When we begin the quest, we're basically going in blind, so make sure you've stocked up with plenty of items. Let's do this, everyone!"

* * *

 _The Dungeon city of Orario, the main building of the guild; the pantheon…_

The scene was quiet, filled with tension that surrounded Bell, Welf and Lily as they stood in front of the guild. Welf had his arms crossed and a glum expression on his face; clearly something was on his mind. And as he finally noticed Bell and Lily were giving him a look that said 'what's the matter' he decided to voice his thoughts.

"…This doesn't feel right."

"What do you mean Welf-san?"

"Just think about this for a second Bell; why are we just finding out about this now? Don't you find it sketchy that the gods never considered this possibility before? And why are we being sent to back up the Loki familia?"

"You shouldn't be so quick to distrust the gods Crozzo-san; both former and current goddess signed off on this, do you not believe in their judgment?"

"Look Lili… all I'm saying is that there is more to this than what's on the surface. Whether or not the gods know something we don't remains to be seen. But speaking from experience, it's important to remember that the god's are self-serving beings no different from their children. You of all people should get where I'm coming from Bell."

"…You may have a point Welf-san, but until we get down there, all we can do is trust Kami-sama."

"It's not her specifically that I don't trust…"

Almost as if they were right on cue, the Loki familia arrived from a side street. After the meeting they had regarding the mission, the two groups agreed to meet here. All the major players were there; Aiz had that semi blank but upbeat expression as she made eye contact with Bell, Tiona was ready to kick some ass while Tione was too busy staring at Finns, and Lefiya stood happily by Aiz's side ready to take down whatever was in her path.

"We meet again Bell-kun, Welf-san."

Lili was waiting for the inevitable awkward greeting from Captain Finn but was surprised to find that it never came. All she got was a nod as Tione grilled her with a glare that said 'he's mine'.

"Hello Bell."

"Hi Aiz-san, where is the rest of your party?"

"Riveria and Bete had to sit this one out and help out with the familia so it will be just the five of us."

"No need to worry about us Bell-san; I will do a fine job of accompanying Aiz in Riveria's absence."

As Lefiya said this, Bell couldn't help but feel that something about the way she talked made it seem like she was actually saying 'step off'.

'The women of Aiz-san's familia sure are possessive…'

Speaking of…

"Argo-kun! There you are, how's my favorite little hero!"

"I'd be just fine if I could breathe!"

Bell was sincerely hoping something would come up to distract Tiona long enough for him to escape her vice like grip, and surely enough his goddess came to the rescue.

"Hey! Keep your hands off my Bell-kun! It's bad enough I can barely keep him around thief-kun and Wallen-whatsit!"

As Hestia helped Bell back on to his feet, Lili was catching up with the newest arrivals on the scene. The former was a katana wielder with short black hair in a lavender kimono by the name of Mikoto. She was recently admitted member of the Hestia family who's in honor and valor in battle matched by her compassion for others and her love for her former master. That and she was one hell of a cook.

The latter was a magic user with short blonde hair and a bright red kimono that concealed her busty form named Haruhime. She became a part of the Hestia familia after helping Bell escape from some troublesome Amazons wanting to have their way with him, which was rather ironic considering she was a trainee prostitute who would pass out from so much as making contact with a man. But after noticing that Bell was an exception to this rule, that would mark the beginning of their companionship.

"Mikoto-nee, did you pack some of your famous meals in case the adventure is a long one?"

"Do you even have to ask?"

As Mikoto held out the bag Haruhime was carrying, Lili looked on in splendor at the pre-packed meals.

"We got that covered; I can vouch as Mikoto let me have a taste, and I must say she really outdid herself!"

Once everyone was acquainted, Finn settled them down as he shared his plan for the adventure.

"There are about 20 different floors the portal can pop up, and according to intel I received from Loki-sama, there is a chance that more than one portal can exist. To maximize search time, every 6 to 7 levels we'll have a group of us splinter off and work their way back up to the first floor. So quickly decide with who you wish to group with; the fate of all adventures and their familias depend on how efficiently we act."


	3. Into the mouth of hell they marched

**Part 3: Into the Mouth of Hell they marched…**

 _Orario: the dungeon tower "Babel" entrance…_

Carrying their blades, armor and wills into the depths of the underground dungeon was the joint party on a mission with high stakes. Upon entering the tower that hosed the dungeon, they found themselves on the first floor, commonly referred to as the "Beginning Road". The interior of this floor consisted of large hallway with light blue walls.

As the party made their way inside, it had been decided prior as to how the team would separate into smaller groups. Haruhime, Mikoto, Lili and Welf would hang around the first 6 levels of the dungeon. Finn, Lefiya and the Amazon twins would cover levels 7 through 12. And finally, levels 13 through 18 will be covered by Bell, Aiz, and Hestia.

Though there had been some objections…

"Shouldn't Aiz be going with our group?"

"Lefiya has a point, and to add on to it, why are we not the ones taking on the lowest levels?"

Tione gave her sister Tiona a stern look for voicing her doubts.

"You two should know by now that everyone always has a reason for making their choices."

"I know… but I was really looking forward to fighting by her side again. Instead she's with the Little Rookie…"

"Is that jealousy leaking into your fantasies about Aiz-san here, huh Lefiya?"

As Aiz listened in on her fellow adventurers, she understood their sentiments. But she still preferred to go with Bell and Hestia. After all, she had taken quite the interest to the boy. Hestia and Aiz are the two most powerful people here, the former of which is a goddess. And while Bell was outranked by most of Loki's adventurers, his Argonaut ability has the highest damage output, despite him being a second rate adventurer.

As the groups encountered the light blue walls of the Beginning Road, the first and second rate adventurers readied their weapons as Kobloids and Goblins began hatching out of the walls.

"Tione, Tiona, 9 o clock!"

The twins quickly heeded his directions and attacked the monsters. Tiona attacked with her large double bladed sword, Urga, using large sweeping strikes to slash and tear the hatchlings that never stood a chance. Tione covered her with a barrage off her multiple pairs of Zolas; Kukri knives that are easily replaced unlike her sister's choice of weaponry.

"Bell-kun, watch out!"

But before he could respond to the Goblin approaching him with a quick strike from his knife, Aiz slashed the creature in half with her unbreakable sword, Desperate (earning a frown from the jealous goddess).

Not to be outdone, Welf unleashed an assault of slashes with his longsword. One of the goblins tried to out flank him but Mikoto takes it out with a wind slash from her Kotetsu Katana. All the while Lili provided support with her little ballista she was hiding under her sleeve.

"Not bad Hestia Familia; though this is to be expected when you guys are the allies of Argo-kun."

"Um…thanks, I guess."

"Impressive as always, Bell."

To no one's surprise, Hestia pulled the blushing adventurer's ear as Tiona and Aiz complimented him.

"I think we all earned a food break, right Mikoto-nii?" the girl said, her stomach growling.

"It's only the first level though." the man known as Crozzo replied, trying to be the voice of reason.

"Shut up Crozzo-san, I'm starving!" However, his attempts failed miserably.

"How about we take a quick break before splitting off at level 6?"

"Depends, is your food really that good?"

"Trust me Finn, you haven't eaten until you have tried her stuff, I give you my word as a smith."

"What do your smithing skills have to do with Mikoto's cooking ability?" Shaking his head in mild confusion, he continued. "Eh, whatever; we'll take a quick break before splitting off."

* * *

 _ALFheim Online, New Aincrad, Floor #1, Grasslands…_

Things were going smoothly as Kirito and Asuna were making their way through the open fields of the first floor. It was a bit darker now after the main group had split off into their respective zones. Normally around this time, the players who had school would be on their way back to Town of Beginnings so they can cash-in from selling the loot and find an inn to log out. But due to the special circumstances of this quest, the only players housed within the trees of this area were these two.

"Aah…this place brings back memories. Klein probably would've leveled up faster if he had come with me to these fields and grinded."

"I remember my first bath in SAO being on this floor, at that farm you were renting…and how you let Argo walk in on me."

Hearing that, the boy laughed awkwardly, putting his hand on the back of his head and instinctively scratching it. "Haha…good times, good times."

As Kirito and Asuna made their way through the fields with Yui sleeping in the former's pocket, they quickly checked through the area. The three of them had split off from the main group and were heading to the easternmost point of the area the quest should be in. Kirito had a hunch that the quest would be in the caverns, noting the direction they were heading towards. But that was when they heard a screeching howl in the immediate area around them.

"Kirito-kun, look out!"

Suddenly Kirito and Asuna found themselves surrounded by a pack of Dire Wolves. Normally these monsters would have been fodder back in SAO, but being that Aincrad was ported and cleared a while ago, the devs upped the difficulty of the field monsters to a considerable degree to keep things challenging for those browsing through lower floors trying to grind.

Asuna quickly pulled out her rapier and began assaulting the attackers. As Kirito did the same, he almost stopped to watch the sight that had unfolded in front of him. There was a reason why she was also a front-liner back in SAO; her accuracy and speed were at least fearsome, and that could be considered as too little. That and the Original Sword Skill she received from the Absolute Sword Zekken called Mother's Rosario, made her a force to be reckoned with.

As Kirito was chain-linking skills with Elucidator and Dark Repulser, Asuna slayed a wolf with each hit of her eleven hit combo.

"Good work, but we can't lose time with those lesser mobs; the caverns are just past the trees over there. Let's give them the slip."

"Alright then, let's get moving!"

The two of them sprinted through the small forest with haste. The pack of wolves did not let up as they chased the two to no end.

As the cavern was near in site, suddenly Yui woke up and got out of his pocket.

"Papa, I'm picking up a strange phenomenon ahead of you."

"No time, we got to get to quest. Can you deal with these pests?"

"Uhm… they won't be a problem."

As Asuna said this, Kirito looked back and noticed that the Wolves that were chasing them are gone, as if they just...poofed.

As they came upon the opening of the cave, Kirito and Asuna took a quick breather while Yui scanned the area.

"Mama, Papa, we've found the quest prompt!" the small pixie said enthusiastically. "That's weird… there is no NPC by the prompt."

"I guess we'll figure what's up when the others get here, I'm messaging them now!"

But before he could even hit send, a strong current of wind began pulling them in.

"Kirito-Kun, what's going on?"

"I don't know!"

"Mama, Papa!"

As the Vortex carried them away, all the two fairies could do was hold onto each other tight and hope for the best.

* * *

 _The dungeon level 18: Rivira…_

"Ughhh….Asuna, are you alright?"

"I'm fine, are you ok? How is Yui?"

Kirito looked over at their 'daughter' and immediately noticed that she no longer was in pixy form.

"Yui, what happened?" He exclaimed, clearly confused by the whole situation at hand. He had no clue as to where they had been teleported to, or why.

"That's what I want to ask you Papa; your data has changed."

"What do you mean Yui?" Kirito asked, his facial expression showing he was puzzled beyond belief. "Everything seems just fine to me."

"Let me check."

Kirito and Asuna looked at each other making a questioning expression before Yui opened a window and read Kirito's stats to the pair.

 **Strength: X?**

 **Endurance: X?**

 **Dexterity: X?**

 **Agility: X?**

 **Magic: ?**

 **Skill(s): Incarnate, Starburst Stream**

"Are we not in ALO anymore?" Asuna inquired, feeling weirder and weirder every passing second.

"I'm not exactly sure yet, but it seems like we've been converted into another world within the seed package. I'm sensing similar deviations in your data too Mama, as well as the others…"

"They're here too? How can you tell Yui?"

"Upon waking up, I notice my data has changed too. I've been assigned party leader rights that allow me to sense the others in real time. And under user rights, the denotation "Goddess" has been imprinted into my code."

"This area feels familiar, where are we exactly Yui?"

"Let me see if I can check the system Papa… Hmm… our current location is called Rivira, the eighteenth floor located in a structure referred to as The Dungeon."

"I thought this place felt familiar Kirito-kun; it looks similar to the floor our cabin is on back in Aincrad; only difference is that!"

Looking up at what Asuna was pointing at, Kirito saw what looked like a crystalized sun hanging from the ceiling, illuminating the entire forest filled area with a faint bluish tint. Kirito and Asuna weren't too sure what to make out of this. This world they're in seemed more…primitive? Well the right word would be simple; the feeling of weight when it comes to their equipment seems to be heavier as well as the gravity.

As the light emanated on their heads suddenly a scary realization occurred to them.

"Wait a minute; can we log out?"

There wasn't a scroll menu or messaging system of any kind, neither was there a health bar. This game seemed to be going for more of a simulation-esque feel… one they're all too familiar with.

"Kirito-kun… you're thinking what I'm thinking right?"

"We have to assume that may be the case. Yui, can you tell where the others are?"

'I can't give you specifics but I can sense their presence in the levels above us Papa."

"Then that's our first priority; we need to regroup with our party."

"Wait… I'm also detecting the presence of other players within this world as well as AI. They're closing in our position. The AI could be NPC's or enemy AI."

"And the players could be trapped here as well or are the ones responsible for this trap."

"There's only one way to know for sure. Asuna, let's get moving."

* * *

 _The dungeon level 17: The big wall of grief…_

Bell and Company were deep within the rocky catacombs of the seventeenth floor, long separated from the rest of their party. With the combined might of the Sword Princess and the Little Rookie, they had made quick work of the monsters they had faced up to this point. But considering the floor they are on at the moment, Bell became cautious.

"Something feels off."

As Bell said this, Aiz, Hestia and Lili collectively nodded. The 17th floor was a lot less uneventful compared to the first time Bell came down here, which only made the rocky, dimly lit corridors all the more eerie.

"You're right; the goliath usually spawns here. The other first class Loki adventurers and I usually encounter at least 1 of them on our way to the deeper floors. Perhaps the dungeon senses your presence Hestia."

"I tried my best not expose myself."

"Too late for that, Hestia-sama."

"What was that Loliruca?"

As the two of them got themselves into a bickerfest, Bell thought about their current predicament. He can still remember the pure intensity of that Black Goliath's roar. If the dungeon truly was capable of creating False Gods or Demons, there was a very real possibility that either these monster rexes are willingly aiding or are being controlled by them.

As he looked at Aiz, it seemed that she was considering the same thing. She wouldn't put it past the dungeon to leave its 'baby' unprotected. The only thing left to figure out was just how far that protection went. Should they prepare to take on evil adventurers while Hestia deals with the demon, or were they looking at a horde of monster rexes and minions?

After walking through a lengthy cavern-like corridor, they arrived at the entrance of the next floor. The peaceful resort floor known as Rivira should give them a comfortable area to plan their next move. But as Aiz thought this, suddenly her intuition kicked in.

"Hold on, this could be a trap."

"How do you know that, Aiz-san?"

"Just think about it Bell; if you knew someone was coming for you, where would you ambush them?"

Understanding her reasoning, Bell was about to answer but Lili cut him off.

"Where you least expect it; in your comfort zone."

"So what do you suggest we do Wallen-whatsit? We can't just stay out here in the open and wait for my cover to get blown."

"Here's what we're going to do Hestia; the four of us are going to push into the forest and avoid the towns or open areas until we can confirm whether the area is secure. After that, Bell, I want you flush them out."

"Eeeeeeh!'

"Don't worry, we'll cover you. If anything pops up, we'll either take them out or get them to chase us back up the dungeon. The other groups will be heading down here to back us up once they secure their floors. We just have to be careful and move swiftly…is there something on my face Bell?"

"No, this is just the most I've heard you say in one instance…"

As Aiz momentarily blushed at his comment, Hestia snapped at him.

"Bell-kun! What did I tell you about you being flirty!"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

As Hestia pinched Bell's cheeks, Lili smirked as Aiz looked on with a confused expression.

 **A/N- The revamps on been made for the most part so now we can get into the new chapters. Stay tuned for more!**


	4. Crossing Fields

**Part 4: Crossing Fields**

 _The Dungeon, Level 6. The Center of the Killer Ants' den..._

The inside of the 6th level of the dungeon consisted of a series of light green hallways and corridors of increased size when compared to the first 4 levels.

A particular wall within this area was different; it was cracked open as if to spawn more of the killer ants, giant red/brown ants the size of dogs that were particularly dangerous in a colony. But what emerged was no killer ant; it was a portal about 2 meters wide in the most intense shade of magenta one could imagine.

Suddenly, four people were spewed from inside it in a violent manner, crashing onto the rocky floors in a state of confusion.

Taking their time to recover, the first to stand was the female bow wielder named Sinon.

"Uhh... my head. Are you guys okay?"

As the girl said this, Recon was picking himself up while grimacing.

"Ouch… what happened, where even are we?" he said confusedly, still groggy from the impact.

The dark skinned axe-man next to him then stood up and examined their surroundings, the blonde boy looking at him dazedly.

"I'm not sure where we are exactly, but this has to be the place Kirito was talking about." said Agil, his senses on overdrive.

As Klein was the last to stand up because everyone else literally fell on him, something peculiar had occurred to him.

"Wait a minute, if we're here that means the others…"

As the implications of Klein's statement dawned on them, they were overtaken by a sense of panic.

"Quick, send a PM to the rest of the group!"

Sinon's instruction ended up becoming a fool's errand.

"I can't pull up a menu! What the hell is going on?"

"It's not just menus I'm not seeing Klein… Sinon, Recon, can either of you see your health bars?"

It was at that moment when Agil pointed that out that the group just realized how dire the situation they were unwillingly thrown in was.

They were stuck in a foreign world possibly created by the world seed, one that operated differently from the games they had played in. It may not even be a game to begin with, even when taking into account how fantasy VRMMOs are known for having this high a degree of realism. But if it's not a game, where exactly are they?

Before they can begin to contemplate the thought, the four of them heard a sound hinting to a commotion happening in the distance.

"Wh-what was that?" the blonde Sylph stammered, somewhat afraid.

"I don't know Recon, but keep your voice down!" the man next to him, still hurting, silently exclaimed.

"Klein is right; we're in no man's land, so let's play it carefully. Sinon, you're the tactician here. What's our move?"

As Agil quietly voiced this, Sinon began formulating a plan of attack. Agil was right to defer judgment to the BoB's semi-finalist of the professional VRMMO, GGO. Sinon is a master at thinking up tactics, whether that was on the spot or predetermined, rivaled only by Asuna. Such a trait tends to be a requirement for snipers, given that their role basically forces them to consider so many variables in order for them to hit their target successfully.

Sinon carefully surveyed the area for any vantage points. It didn't take her long to spot a ledge overlooking the forward approach to their current position, as well as some boulder below that could serve well as cover.

"Listen up, until we can confirm otherwise, let's assume the worst and act accordingly. But before that I want to verify my theory…"

Upon voicing this desire, Sinon's eye's fell upon Recon, along with Agil and Klein's.

"Why are you 3 looking at me like that?"

"Time to step up to the plate, Ghost Recon!"

* * *

"Doesn't anyone else get the feeling that we're not alone?"

"We're in the dungeon shorty, we're never alone!"

"Lily knows this, Crozzo-san! What Lily meant is that it feels like someone is nearby…"

"If that is case we have to keep our eyes open and our voices basically silent. Remember, we still don't know exactly what we're up against so the last thing we want to do is get caught off guard."

Lecturing Lily was the swordswoman in their group named Yamato Mikoto. She wore a purple kimono with a red samurai styled cauldron over her left shoulder. Lily's so called "Onee-sama" had been put in charge over this squad as her combat prowess exceeded that of the others, though that didn't stop Welf from playing backseat leader.

"Um, guys, how much longer are we going to be down here…"

Making her fearful of the situation was none other than Sanjouno Haruhime. She is a Runarl (a human/fox mix) with blonde hair and green eyes. Her smooth and fair skin, as well as her ample bosom was concealed by a...maid outfit? She served as the group's magical support, provided she doesn't come into contact with males, which literally caused her to pass out from anxiety if they were naked.

Needless to say, Welf was kept at a distance from her just in case.

As the group was approaching a cavernous corridor with a ledge in the distance, Mikoto's intuition kicked in.

"Hold up, the area up ahead is very open, making it an ideal spot for an ambush. Let me check it out."

Mikoto quietly concentrated as she put her "Yatanokurogarasu" skill to use. This skill allowed her to spot enemies hidden in cover. Given the restriction of only being effective on monsters, and even then only beings ones she's seen before, she didn't intend to spot what they were after. But given that their targets were probably accompanied by minions provided the dungeon, at the very least they wouldn't be flying completely blind.

"Hmm… I'm not detecting any presence ahead, but something smells fishy. Proceed with caution, people."

"Uhm, guys…"

As Mikoto, Welf and Haruhime turned around; they were greeted by the sight of Lily with a knife to her neck.

"L-Lily could use your assistance anytime now!" she cried.

The assailant was as an elf of short stature whose green clothes matched his green hair.

Before they could even try to talk him down, a pair of battle shouts came from behind them.

* * *

 _The dungeon level 12…_

"Ugh… I hate this floor. I still think we should have taken the 18th floor instead captain."

"Tiona, what did I tell you about doubting the captain?"

"Thank you Tione…"

"Hush! I'm still not talking to you!"

As Lefiya mentally sighed at the antics of her seniors, she just wished this mission was over.

They were currently on the twelfth floor, which could best be described as a cave filled with clouds. The ceiling changes height from three to four meters from the floors above to nearly ten meters. Not that they would be able to see it anyways as the floor is engulfed in a thick fog more dense than the two levels above it. Moss covers the brown colored walls and the ground below becomes a short grass plain.

 _The dungeon just had to make the floor right before the middle floors more 'exciting'._

As Lefiya thought this to herself, Captain Finn kept trying to smooth things with Tione to no avail, while looked on with a shit eating grin on her face.

Captain Finn, whose full name is Finn Deimne, had an appearance that basically is described as deceiving. What looked like a blonde little boy in a yellow vest over a purple long-sleeved shirt and trousers was actually a 40-year old Pallum (hobbit). And not just any pallum, but the best of them as far as adventurers go. Just the type of inspiration they need, given their declining population. This brings us to exhibit B: Tione Hiryute.

Now if the former had a deceptive appearance, the latter was the exact opposite. Tione was tan skinned amazon with an ample bosom which was only covered by her red battle "accessory", if a bra could be called that. Her legs were wrapped with matching red stockings. Now how exactly does such a beauty have to do with declining pallum populations? Well you see…

"How could you betray my love and chase after that vandal from the Hestia familia? I trusted you!"

"Tione, we've talked about this, we're not married. Can we please focus...I thought you weren't talking to me?"

"I'm not talking to you, I'm talking at you!"

Yeah… pretty much that.

Her twin sister Tiona, who wore a beige tube top to cover up her rather small (don't tell her that) bosom along with a golden skirt, didn't exactly mitigate things. In fact, if popcorn had existed in the world of Orario, she probably would be licking the butter off her fingers as she got the front row seats all for herself to this romance-comedy the situation had degraded to.

This left the elf in an all pink dress and orange hair named Lefiya Viridis as the only voice of reason at the moment.

"I wonder how things are going with Aiz…" she said to herself out loud.

"Quiet… someone is approaching!"

As Finn whispered this, the group stood attentive. Being that the fog was so thick, they won't see whoever it was until they are within 6 feet of each other.

In the distance, what looked like 4 female figures were approaching them, the nearest of them being a step ahead of the rest.

"Onii-chan, is that you?"

Upon coming into viewing distance, the blonde elf dressed in an all green dress immediately realized that none of the people in front of her are the person she had been hoping to see.

"Halt; of the currently authorized adventurers with permission to be here, none of you are on that list. Therefore, under the authority of the pantheon of the gods, we will be detaining you all until you're identities can be confirmed…."

"Yeah… that's not happening short stuff!"

The one who said this was not the blonde but instead what appeared to be fiery red(or to proper, pink) haired elf in a red dress carrying a medieval War Mace.

Tione was about to walk right up to her and re-arrange her face but the captain held her back.

"Please cooperate, I would hate for things to become messy…"

The four women looked at each other briefly before the blonde responded with an authoritative tone in her voice.

"Until we find my brother and our friends, we're not going…."

But before the elf could finish, the captain blitzed her with a speed she could barely track with her eyes. Finn couldn't afford to hold back at his foe as he had no idea what to expect, so he activated his magical ability "Hell Finegas" upon making contact with them. This magic granted him an immense boost in fight ability at the cost of his judgment, but he had to stall for time to prep its use, which worked out wonderfully.

The elf barely managed to use a barrier type magic in time to absorb the strike from Finn's staff before backing up and pulling out her sword. As quickly as she could, the blonde chanted something in a foreign tongue, and what looked like 5 V-shaped magic bolts appeared over her head. With a loud yell, she signaled them at Finn's direction as he prepared himself for her onslaught of magic attacks.

Meanwhile the amazon twins bum-rushed two of the other foreign elves. Tiona fought another elf who's only difference from the first one in that her hair was lose instead of being in a ponytail on top of being a pale light green. This opponent managed to hold her own as she parried numerous swipes from Tiona's double edge broadsword. Because the latter's weapon was noticeably bigger and heavier as opposed to the former's Blade, which was light and nimble, Tiona could barely keep up with her counter attacks.

"Aww!"

The elf had managed to land a strike on Tiona's left forearm, leaving a small gash. But what was weird was that her opponent had been just as stunned, like she wasn't expecting to cause in actual wound.

Little did they know that thanks to Tiona's "berserk" skill, that blow made her stronger.

"I think I'm done warming up, are you?"

If her opponent had been out to aggro her, they have succeeded.

 **A/N- Announcement: Everyone, please welcome the new beta reader for this story, One More Guy! He has already fixed up the first three chapters so give them a look when you have the time. I'm really glad for his input and am looking forward to taking this story to new heights with his help.** _(B/N: Even though he's a lazy bum who takes too long to even notice he had to BR something *cough* I'm not that incompetent, I swear, I just had my own story to work with ;_;)_

 **Also, 94 followers! Thanks for the immense support! I know I've been lazy with updates but I appreciate it! This will be the first story I ever got with 100 or more subs in my 3-4 year tenure here at FFN (which by the way is the exclusive home of my works because I'm too lazy to upload on dead sites *cough Ao3 cough*), and I think it's fitting that I managed to get this using the series that got me into light novel/anime.**

 **Stay tuned for more!**

 **-Kidstandout**


	5. Interlude

**Interlude**

 _The dungeon city of Orario; The Hostess of Fertility Pub…_

 _Earlier today_

It was another busy day at the pub. Mamma Mia had all her staff working today as the current temporary closing of the dungeon meant an influx of adventurers looking to make use of their day off. So this was good for business, but also meant less down time for the workers, and by workers we're primarily talking about the slacker known as Syr. The silver haired human waitress could already anticipate the soreness she would feel at the end of her shift. Thankfully her partner in crime was there to make sure she picked up the slack.

"Ryuu...this day just won't end! I can't even see past the entrance with all these people….Ryuu?"

The female elf also wearing the green waitress attire, whose dyed, lime green hair complemented the dress very well didn't seem to respond as it appeared her mind was elsewhere.

When Ryuu first heard the reason as to why the pub had been so packed, she couldn't help but feel a strong sense of déjà vu. Once again, her good friend and favorite customer, "Little Rookie" Bell Cranel, is traveling to the middle floor under unusual circumstances. Now she had no reason to worry as, unlike the first time, Bell is a level 3 adventurer and is accompanied by none other than the Loki squad.

Yet something that had happened earlier clouded that assessment.

"Syr, I'm going on my break, let Mia know in case I don't see her on the way out."

"Wait…don't leave, take me with you!"

"I told you not to take yours so early, didn't I?"

* * *

It was a few minutes past noon when Ryuu got onto the street. When she was about 5 blocks away from the pub, the elf turned and entered a dimly lit alley. Waiting for her at an intersection half way in was a person of interest. Upon reaching their vicinity, she called out to Ryuu.

"What's with the hold up?"

"I apologize for my tardiness Asfi, work was erratic due to the dungeon's closure."

Asfi al Andromeda is the captain of the Hermes familia. She is a fair skinned, blue haired human female who wore a white cloak over her yellow dress. Asfi's modest but endearing looks were matched only by her sharp wit and battle capability. The woman had been at the pub earlier alongside Hermes and Loki, who seemed to having a devious scheme as they snickered away.

Ryuu wasn't sure why Asfi had instructed her in the pub to meet up here, but she had a feeling it may concern her given the grave tone Asfi's voice carried.

"I'll have to get you up to speed later, we have to make our way to the dungeon at once. I fear this situation may be another one of Hermes' games, Bell and the others might be in some unnecessary trouble."

 **A/N- just a taste of things to come, stay tuned! As a reminder all chapters have been betaed so give them a look.**


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